A cornucopia in the Parthenon: affective circuits in a neighborhood in Porto Alegre

Abstract

Based on the concept of circuits (Zelizer, 2009, 2011), this ethnography deals with the sociabilities among residents of a housing complex in Porto Alegre, RS. The main argument is these relationships involve subjects in different ways, circulating the affections manifested as morals, money, food, goods, languages, and other forms. Furthermore, it suggests that these affective circuits, initially restricted to some residents in reciprocity, overflow their limits, being reconfigured and adding other links to the social networks of that neighborhood.